Nigel Farage blasted over appearances on far-right US website Infowars
Nigel Farage denies being a conspiracy theorist after ‘appearing six times in 10 years’ on far-right US website Infowars whose founder Alex Jones was last week banned from Facebook
- Brexit Party leader has appeared on the site six times in the past 10 years
- In one interview he reportedly discussed ‘globalists’ and the ‘new world order’
- The Board of Deputies of British Jews said he must ‘repudiate these ideas’
- Jones was among right-wing figures removed from Facebook last week
Mr Farage told reporters today: ‘I have never been a conspiracy theorist’
Nigel Farage has denied being a conspiracy theorist today after appearing on a far-right news website whose founder was last week banned from Facebook.
The former Ukip leader, who quit over its political lurch to the right under current chief Gerard Batten and now leads the Brexit Party, has repeatedly been interviewed by Infowars host Alex Jones.
He has appeared on the controversial host’s show six times in the last decade, the Guardian reported.
Jones was among a slew of right-wing figures removed from Facebook last week, with a spokesman for the firm saying: ‘We’ve always banned individuals or organizations that promote or engage in violence and hate, regardless of ideology.’
Speaking at a Brexit Party press conference today Mr Farage told reporters: ‘As far as Infowars is concerned, I have done it very infrequently, perhaps once every couple of years.’
‘if you appear on programmes, it doesn’t mean that you support the editorial line necessarily.
‘I know Jones is accused of conspiracy theories and I wonder if there is, without doubt, some truth in that. I have never been a conspiracy theorist at all.’
The Guardian reported that during his appearances Mr Farage discussed ‘globalists’ and the ‘new world order’, which led to a condemnation from the Board of Deputies of British Jews.
A spokesman for the organisation said: ‘It is vital that our politicians distance themselves from conspiracy theories and conspiracy theorists, including those who trade in antisemitic tropes.
‘We would call on Nigel Farage to repudiate these ideas and to commit not to dignify odd-ball nasties like Alex Jones with his presence again.’
Jones was among a slew of right-wing figures removed from Facebook last week
A Muslim Council of Britain spokesman told the Guardian that the Brexit Party leader’s appearances ‘demonstrates a serious lack of judgment by Mr Farage and a willingness to tolerate Islamophobia’.
Facebook removed a string of figures last week, saying their accounts violated its policies against dangerous individuals and organizations.
As well as Mr Jones those banned from the social media platform and its sister site Instagram were Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan and Paul Nehlen, a US white nationalist who ran for Congress in 2018.
They are banned from creating accounts, but users will still be able to publish posts supporting their viewpoints, though some links to videos, articles and other content by these figures will be taken down.
The crackdown comes as the social media giant has been criticized for its failure to curb the spread of misinformation, as well as hateful and extremist content on the site.
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